3L Weekly Docket

This week’s Weekly Docket is loaded with post-graduate job opportunities, including opportunities in Georgia, Texas, California, Chicago, and DC. If you’re looking for your first legal job, take a look at these opportunities and reach out to the CDO if you want help crafting applications.

Supported by the Georgia Bar Foundation, the Georgia Housing Corps (GHC) is an Equal Justice Works initiative designed to promote community redevelopment and address housing instability for low-income residents in communities harmed by the foreclosure crisis throughout the state of Georgia over two years. Comprised of eleven Legal Fellows and seven Community Advocates, the program works to keep residents in their homes, preserve affordable housing through community education and client representation, and remove barriers to housing at the local and statewide levels through systemic advocacy. The following sites are hiring postgraduate Fellows:

Job Opportunity: City of Chicago Department of Law Torts Division, May 11 Deadline

DEPARTMENT OF LAW – Assistant Corporation Counsel, Torts Division

The City of Chicago Law Department is seeking an attorney for the position of Assistant Corporation Counsel in its Torts Division. The Assistant Corporation Counsel’s work will be primarily personal injury defense representing the City and its employees from a variety of City Departments. The types of tort cases litigated and tried by Torts Division attorneys include premises liability, roadway design, motor vehicle collisions, medical malpractice, police pursuits and misconduct, wrongful death, defamation, and delayed emergency response. The Assistant Corporation Counsel will be responsible for an individual docket of cases, conduct jury trials, have an active discovery and motion practice, take and defend depositions, make settlement recommendations, and engage in settlement negotiations.

The following information should not be considered exhaustive. Interested applicants should read the full posting found atwww.cityofchicago.org/careers (Job Number: 306934).

Applications must be submitted in accordance with the posting below. No email applications will be accepted.

Qualifications

Graduation from an American Bar Association accredited law school with a Juris Doctor degree in or before June 2018 and admission to the Illinois Bar OR eligibility to sit for the July 2018 Illinois Bar Examination (OR eligible for admission on motion to the Illinois Bar pursuant to Illinois Supreme Court Rule 705).

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

Ideal candidates will possess:

Self-starter with the ability to take initiative as demonstrated by past achievements and leadership;

Interest and/or experience in litigation and trial work;

Superior communication skills;

Exceptional research and writing skills;

Ability to work well with others and manage workflow and deadlines; and

Class rank in the top 40% of his or her graduating law school class.

Application Process and Materials

There is a two-step application process for this position. All application materials are due on or before May 11, 2018.

Step Two: In addition to the on-line application, and regardless of whether such materials were uploaded with your on-line application, the following materials must be submitted in hard copy to City of Chicago Department of Law’s Legal Recruiter, 30 North LaSalle Street, Suite 1640, Chicago, IL 60602:

Cover letter that (1) includes the position title and job number as noted on the posting; and (2) specifically identifies how you meet the minimum qualifications and have the knowledge, skills, and abilities listed above;

Resume;

Law school transcript (official or unofficial);

Two writing samples; and

Current printout of your attorney registration status from the Illinois ARDC website at www.iardc.org (or your admitted state bar’s equivalent), if applicable.

Job Opportunity: Common Cause Legal Fellow

Legal Fellow (Compensated 1 Year Position, August 2018-July 2019)

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS: Work with legal, program, communications, and state staff to identify and manage legal research, litigation and policy analysis needed to support Common Cause’s strategic priorities, including fair representation, campaign finance reform, government ethics, voting rights, elections, redistricting, media law and other good government issues.

Drafting reports, website content, social media and other materials to help educate and mobilize the public;
Sharing supervision of interns; and

Other work as needed.

QUALIFICATIONS:

The successful candidate must have:

Law degree (completed by June 2018) and be admitted to the bar (or sitting for the bar exam in July 2018) in one or more jurisdictions;

Ability to begin work in August 2018 or sooner;

Commitment to Common Cause issues and agenda;

Commitment to cultural competency, including the ability to work effectively with those belonging to groups of diverse backgrounds, including but not limited to race, ethnicity, gender, nationality, sexual orientation, religion, language, ability, age and socioeconomic status;

Commitment to advancing racial equity through Common Cause issue agenda;

Ability to work effectively with and build alliances among diverse communities and stakeholders, including but not limited to people of color, people of diverse political affiliations, business leaders, young people, and members of faith communities;

Strong legal research skills;

Ability to grasp complex legal and policy issues;

Ability to work independently on multiple tasks with competing priorities in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment;

Collaborative working style and strong interpersonal skills;

Excellent oral and written communication skills;

Ability to handle a range of responsibilities; and

Willingness to travel and occasionally work evenings and weekends.

TO APPLY: Please submit resume and cover letter to Director of Human Resources at hr@commoncause.org and include LEGAL FELLOW AND YOUR NAME in the subject line. No phone calls please. Applicants are encouraged to respond as soon as possible.

Texas RioGrande Legal Aid seeks a full-time Staff Attorney in Corpus Christi, Texas, for its Disaster Assistance Team. The Disaster Assistance team provides disaster-related legal services to clients through TRLA’s service area. Since 2002, when TRLA merged with four other legal service organizations located in our 68-county service region, TRLA has responded to fifteen federally declared disasters throughout our service region. TRLA has worked with clients immediately following the disaster and for months, sometimes years, afterward. The disasters impacting TRLA’s service area have included tropical storms and hurricanes (including Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005 and Hurricane Dolly in 2008, and Hurricane Harvey in 2017); wildfires in Central Texas; and severe storms, tornadoes and/or flooding in El Paso, Eagle Pass, Laredo, Central Texas, the Gulf Coast, and the Rio Grande Valley.

The attorney will focus his/her efforts primarily on direct service to clients, handling FEMA administrative matters, as well as a variety of other types of disaster-related cases which may include, but are not limited to:

The Liberty Justice Center is seeking a Staff Attorney with 0 to 5 years of litigation experience to join our team of lawyers protecting individual liberty and enforcing constitutional limits on government power. The Staff Attorney will be expected to assist the Liberty Justice Center’s senior attorneys in all facets of case development and litigation. Candidates must be self-motivated and have excellent communication skills. Candidates must also understand, and be committed to, the Liberty Justice Center’s mission and the principles of individual liberty, free markets, and limited government. The Liberty Justice Center offers its employees competitive salaries, performance-based bonuses, health and dental insurance, and a retirement savings plan with employer matching.

Applicants must submit a cover letter, resume, and two legal writing samples to Jacob Huebert, jhuebert@libertyjusticecenter.org. The cover letter should explain why you want to work at the Liberty Justice Center, which issues and cases particularly interest you, and what distinguishes you from other candidates.

This position will be critical to helping low-income Californians access free legal information in the years to come. As civil liberties are threatened, the Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC) supports the legal safety net by working to secure funding, encourages collaboration between organizations, and facilitates communication through lists and conferences.

LAAC is the statewide membership organization for almost 100 legal nonprofits. LAAC advocates for its members through lobbying in Sacramento, trains in core substantive areas, analyzes best practices, and works to improve the effectiveness of legal aid in California.

This is a great attorney position for someone interested in legal services nonprofits, legislative and administrative advocacy, and support for the statewide system of other legal nonprofits. This is also a great position for someone who is returning to work after taking time away from the practice of law.

Located in Oakland, the Program Attorney will report directly to the Executive Director, will work frequently with the Directing Attorney, and will supervise non-attorney program staff. Funding is secured for this position for one year, and LAAC is currently working to secure funding to make this a permanent position.

You need:

J.D. (bar passage not required, but helpful)

Project management and/or event coordination experience

Strong communication and interpersonal skills

Ability to write/edit well and produce quality publications with strong attention to detail

Capable of working independently and as part of a team

Expertise in Word, Excel, Google applications, online databases

Experience working with low-income and underserved communities preferred—bonus if you’ve worked or interned for a LAAC member in the past

Supportive team-based environment that allows you to take an early lead on projects

Some travel required, expenses paid by LAAC

Application: Send (1) a cover letter with a detailed explanation of your qualifications and why you are a match for this; (2) your resume; (3) three references; and (4) a writing sample of no more than 5 pages via email to the Executive Director at careers@laaconline.org. Please include “Program Attorney” in your email subject header. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis and the start date will be asap.